Abbas condemns killing of IDF soldiers in NY meeting with Jewish leaders

PA leader calls on Israel to condemn IDF killing of Palestinians; says bi-national state gaining ground among Palestinians.

By JPOST.COM STAFF
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. (photo credit: REUTERS/ISSAM RIMAWI/POOL)
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.
(photo credit: REUTERS/ISSAM RIMAWI/POOL)
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas met with Jewish leaders in New York on Monday night, condemning the killing of two IDF soldiers by Palestinians in two separate terror attacks over the weekend, Israel Radio reported.
Abbas is in New York to give an address at this week's UN General Assembly and is set to meet with US President Barack Obama on Tuesday.
The PA president's comments to Jewish leaders came after Israel complained to the US in the wake of the terror attacks, claiming that the Palestinian Authority had failed to stop violence and incitement against it and its citizens.
On Sunday, a Palestinian sniper killed a soldier in Hebron and on Friday a Palestinian lured an Israeli soldier into the West Bank and killed him, in hopes of ransoming the soldier’s body for the release of his brother from an Israeli jail.
Abbas condemned the killings and all other acts of violence against civilians, adding that he expected Israel to condemn the killing of four Palestinians by Israeli security forces in recent weeks.
Israel Radio quoted Abbas as saying that, while he himself still supports a two-state solution, the idea of one bi-national state is gaining ground among Palestinians.
Tovah Lazaroff contributed to this report.